Primer pockets and progressive loading

[JWT]

I size and deprime on my Rockchucker, then clean the primer pockets and prime the brass using either a Lyman or RCBS Ram Prime tool on the Rockchucker (I have both, set up for different cases). When I run brass through my progressive presses, it's sized, primer pockets cleaned and primed. This also frees up one position on the progressive for an RCBS Powder check die, which will lock up the press if there's a short charge or double charge of powder. It also makes the progressive much smoother to operate.

Some will tell you it's not necessary to clean primer pockets, and that my method negates the advantage of the progressive press, but it's my shop and I get to make the rules there. Works for me, and I never have primer problems.

Hope this helps.

Fred

I do the same thing as Fred

[Dennis Eugene]

It is simple, you never hear about mass amounts of miss fire or hangfire coming off the progressives. It only seems to me that build up must not be a problem as per the many hundreds of thousands, millions?, Of rounds loaded and fired from progressive presses. D. C.

[Stilly]

This is a question for you progressive reloaders, something I've wondered about for a long time. You guys that deprime/resize/prime on your progressive setup and (presumably) skip cleaning the primer pocket, how do you get away with not cleaning the carbon out of the primer pockets?

I can't figure out how the accumulation of carbon/crud in the primer pockets doesn't interfere with the seating of primers. I would think that over time, the crud and carbon in the primer pocket would build up and eventually your primers won't seat to full depth and may even start to seat proud of the cartridge case head surface, which would be NOT GOOD.

Skook

There really is not a lot. Think about it, knock out the primer and where the primer was, it is clean... (usually) But it is still just caked on dust for the most part.

Of course I wet process so this stuff does not bother or affect me.

[z28z34man]

I deprime on a single stage and run it through ss pin tumbler then depending on my mood I may hand prime and remove the decaping pin and load or just run it through the press as normal.

[ReloaderFred]

I've looked at the residue from fired primers under a microscope and it looks like glass shards. I figure I'm putting enough of it down the bore the first time, so why add more? When I look in the catch box under the little machine I made to clean primer pockets, there's quite a bit of residue collected there after cleaning a thousand or so primer pockets.

But like I said above, each person gets to make the rules in their shop........ It just makes me feel better to know I'm priming clean pockets and that each primer is being seated the same depth in them. It eliminates a concern for me, but I'd never tell anyone else they had to do it my way.

Hope this helps.

Fred

[Road_Clam]

Been loading progressive rifle and pistol on a Dillon 650 for many years, I don't bother with cleaning primer pockets IMO. It's a lot of extra steps to ensure clean pockets, and not worth it for me. The only painstaking extra steps I take is sorting my nato crimped FC brass from regular commercial. You don't want the aggravation of crimped brass jamming your press. I deprime and chamfer nato brass, then it's ready for my progressive.

[bleukahuna]

I kind of defeat the purpose of the progressive press, but after I ruined a sizing die I came up with a procedure that works for me. With dirty brass I just decap at the first station with a universal decapping die and then run the rest empty, ss pin tumble cleans primer pockets and leaves me pretty brass. Second trip through for dirty brass, first for clean, lanolin lube, resize or decap and resize, ss or corn cob tumble, trim chamfer process primer pockets and flash hole if necessary. Last trip, prime, charge, seat and crimp if required. Back when I just lubed and loaded my empties, I picked up enough **** to scratch an RCBS sizer (if you're going to wreck a die, wreck an RCBS)

[MyFlatline]

I changed my method due to the dirt and grime jamming up the LNL priming system. I now do like some of the others , deprime and clean, then start the priming process,,or hand prime lots of times just because.

[Black Prince]

This is a question for you progressive reloaders, something I've wondered about for a long time. You guys that deprime/resize/prime on your progressive setup and (presumably) skip cleaning the primer pocket, how do you get away with not cleaning the carbon out of the primer pockets?

I can't figure out how the accumulation of carbon/crud in the primer pockets doesn't interfere with the seating of primers. I would think that over time, the crud and carbon in the primer pocket would build up and eventually your primers won't seat to full depth and may even start to seat proud of the cartridge case head surface, which would be NOT GOOD.

Skook

You don't get away with not cleaning primer pockets on a progressive press. First you wash off most of the dirt and grit on the cases with soap and water in a 5 gallon bucket using your garden hose outside. After drying, you go over to your RCBS universal sizing die in a press on your loading bench next to the progressive and you decap all of your cases using it. I use an old Lyman All American press for that purpose. Then you put those deprimed cases into your Frankford Arsenal rotary case cleaner with some of their case cleaner, water, and five pounds of stainless steel pins and turn it on for about three hours. Then you separate the cases from the pins, wash them off with your garden hose, and dry them. THEN you go to your progressive press and resize and load them using your resizing die that doesn't even have a decaping rod or pin in it. And you don't have a primer catch on the press because you don't need it and you don't have all that dirty stuff that falls out of cases after decaping fouling up your press either. But you do load with cases that look brand new including the primer pockets. And you do keep your press and everything on the shell plate clean and neat. And you produce ammo that can easily be mistaken for factory ammo.

[ioon44]

I also deprime then wet tumble, keeps the primer system running clean but I still leave the decaping rod in my dies just to make sure the flash hole is clear.

[dragon813gt]

In my experience I can reload and shoot a case until the headstamp is worn off or the case splits before there is any build up of carbon or anything else that prevents a primer from being seated.

Same here. And I will go one step further. Cleaning primer pockets make no difference on target. It's an area that I feel is a total waste of time.

[dikman]

I do the same as ioon44. I use a Pro1000 (because it's got a collator) set up with a de-priming sizer die and run them all through there first. It's amazing the amount of black crud that comes out with the old primers! It may not be necessary, as some say, but I've got the time and it works for me.

[BlackRat]

I only clean the primer pockets when I'm loading small batches of ammo for my rifles, however when I'm running my 550 or the LNL I leave the primer pockets as they are. I never had a problem leaving them with a little crud and honestly I don't think that there's nothing to gain in terms of accuracy or reliability that would make me spend some extra time to clean them.

[dikman]

I forgot to mention why I really bother to clean the primer pockets - some time ago I started having problems with raised primers, both in .38 and .44-40, so started cleaning them which cured most of the issues. My revolvers are particularly susceptible to problems (as in cylinder jams) if the primers aren't seated properly.

[Walter Laich]

OK, I'm the odd man out

that and OCD causes me to deprime before I wet tumble--why? so I have an extra step to do is really the only reason I can think of

SDB user so I remove the 3 bolts that hold on the primer system, 4 that hold on tool head. Pull out dies
Replace with tool head that just as depriming rod in it.
Takes less than 5 min if I'm slow

now all I have to do is feed the primed brass in and work the handle. No need to remove the deprimed case as it works its way around and drops in the bin as I work the handle. Saves half the effort not having to remove the deprimed case before adding the primed one.

Do blow off the press well when finished.

I found I can deprime .45 Colt, .45 ACP and .44 Sp/Mag with the .45 Colt shell place. Can't work the press hard, just easy does it and the cases all stay in the plate. I do get the occasional ACP that will hang up on the deprimer rod but a quick pull with needle-nosed plyers solves that

[David2011]

If you have identified a problem that requires clean primer pockets in order to resolve the issue then by all means clean them. If you have OCD and just can't reload without cleaning them, by all means satisfy the compulsion.

For the average shooter it will make no difference. I have .45ACP cases that have the headstamps beaten illegible (shooting light loads, no less) that have never had the primer pockets cleaned. They work perfectly every time. If you find abrasive residue in the primer pocket don't worry, most of it went out the barrel chasing the bullet. I do agree wholeheartedly on one point. That residue is a PITA for the priming system of most any progressive press.

The only time I have cleaned primer pockets was when I was uniforming some to see if it made my most accurate rifle shoot any better. It's only a sub .4 MOA rifle and I couldn't tell any difference. It didn't become a sub .3 MOA gun over clean, uniform primer pockets. That's for the guys that are shooting sub .2 MOA or over 600 yards in my opinion. I think more trigger time is more useful than shiny primer pockets.

[oldhenry]

I only load pistol cartridges now.....all on 550 Dillon.

ONCE FIRED RANGE BRASS: deprime, uniform pocket with Sinclair tool, wet tumble in 6/1 water/lemon juice, dry, tumble in CC media & load (they look like new).

When brass doesn't clean up to suit me I'll do the same: otherwise I just tumble & load.

Henry

[Walter Laich]

I guess the look of 'new' brass all loaded up and ready to go makes it worthwhile to me. And that's the nice thing about this hobby/sport/obsession: we can modify it to suit our own likes.

[daboone]

........ that's the nice thing about this hobby/sport/obsession: we can modify it to suit our own likes.

Amen. All these opinions, logical reasons and methods are perfect for the individual who is responsible for his handloads. Sometimes I enjoy all the processes sometime I don't find it necessary for a specific cartridge's intended purpose.

[pjames32]

Before I retired I just loaded my pistol stuff on my Dillon SDB. Since I retired, most of my pistol brass is deprimed with my Harvey tool, cleaned and loaded. Probably an un-needed step, but I like it. My rifle cases are deprimed and sized then cleaned. With all that said, I've never seen a case that swaggered at me.